Presents:

WEEKLY ECONOMIC UPDATE

December 1, 2014

WEEKLY QUOTE

CAUTIOUS SPENDING, BUT IMPRESSIVE GROWTH

Ability will never

catch up with the
demand for it.
- Malcolm Forbes

Personal income and personal spending both rose 0.2% in October, according to the
Commerce Department. Not too impressive? Maybe, but the federal governments
second estimate of Q3 GDP was. Pair the newly revised 3.9% reading with the final
4.6% mark for Q2, and you get the best 6 months for the economy since 2003. The
Federal Reserves personal consumption expenditure (PCE) price index was only up
1.4% in the past year; the Fed has set its annual consumer inflation target at 2.0%. 1

WEEKLY TIP

CONSUMER SENTIMENT BAROMETERS RISE & FALL

Make a contribution
to a 529 plan by
December 31 to have
it count for the 2014
tax year. You may be
eligible for a state
income tax deduction
as a result.

HOUSING MARKET CONTINUES TO NORMALIZE

WEEKLY RIDDLE
It can be less thick
than your finger
when it folds, yet as
thick as what it
carries when it holds.
What is it?
Last weeks riddle:
I often exist in the
unaware; I persist, yet
they dont care. My
hosts may have a blind
eye, and a deaf ear;
inform them, and I will
disappear. What am I?
Last weeks answer:
Ignorance.

At 88.7, the Conference Boards November consumer confidence index slipped badly
from Octobers 94.5 mark. In better news, the University of Michigans consumer
sentiment index notched a monthly gain of 1.9 points with an 88.8 final November
reading.2
Last week, Septembers 20-city S&P/Case-Shiller home price index showed a 4.9%
yearly rise, much less than the double-digit annual gains seen in the March and April
editions. Pending home sales, as measured by the National Association of Realtors,
were down 1.1% for October; that is the third retreat in five months. October did see
a third straight monthly advance in new home buying; sales were up 0.7% according
to the Census Bureau.2
MINOR ADVANCE FOR STOCKS, MAJOR RETREAT BY OIL

NYMEX crude closed out the month at $66.15 a barrel, the lowest since September
2009; prices slipped 10.2% on Friday alone after OPEC decided not to cut supply.
The S&P 500, on the other hand, gained 0.20% last week to settle at 2,067.56 Friday.
The Dows weekly advance of 0.10% took it to a close of 17,828.24 Friday afternoon;
the Nasdaq rose 1.67% on the week to end November at 4,791.63.3,4
THIS WEEK: Monday, ISM puts out its November manufacturing PMI. Tuesday,
Wall Street considers earnings from Radio Shack, Bob Evans and Omnivision.
Wednesday sees the release of ISMs November services sector PMI, a new Fed Beige
Book, ADPs November employment change report and earnings from Guess? and
Abercrombie & Fitch. Barnes & Noble, Smith & Wesson, American Eagle, Kroger and
Dollar General all announce earnings Thursday, which is also when Novembers
Challenger job-cut report and the latest initial jobless claims numbers arrive. Friday
offers the Labor Departments November employment report, data on October
factory orders and earnings from Big Lots.
% CHANGE

Y-T-D

1-YR CHG

5-YR AVG

10-YR AVG

DJIA

+7.55

+10.83

+14.58

+7.02

NASDAQ

+14.73

+18.02

+24.81

+12.74

S&P 500

+11.86

+14.49

+18.03

+7.54

REAL YIELD

11/28 RATE

1 YR AGO

5 YRS AGO

10 YRS AGO

10 YR TIPS

0.39%

0.60%

1.15%

1.74%

Sources: online.wsj.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov - 11/28/14

Indices are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested into directly. These returns do
not include dividends. 10-year TIPS real yield = projected return at maturity given expected inflation.
5,6,7,8

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Securities and advisory services offered through National Planning Corporation(NPC), Member FINRA/SIPC,
Registered Investment Advisor. FlagStone Retirement Consultants, LLC and NPC are separate and unrelated
companies. FlagStone Retirement Consultants, and NPC are neither endorsed by, retained by, nor affiliated with the
companies here within.
This material was prepared by MarketingPro, Inc., and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party, nor their
affiliates. This information has been derived from sources believed to be accurate. Please note - investing involves risk, and past
performance is no guarantee of future results. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services.
If assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional. This information should not be
construed as investment, tax or legal advice and may not be relied on for the purpose of avoiding any Federal tax penalty. This is neither
a solicitation nor recommendation to purchase or sell any investment or insurance product or service, and should not be relied upon as
such. All indices are unmanaged and are not illustrative of any particular investment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is a priceweighted index of 30 actively traded blue-chip stocks. The NASDAQ Composite Index is an unmanaged, market-weighted index of all
over-the-counter common stocks traded on the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System. The Standard
& Poor's 500 (S&P 500) is an unmanaged group of securities considered to be representative of the stock market in general. It is not
possible to invest directly in an index. NYSE Group, Inc. (NYSE:NYX) operates two securities exchanges: the New York Stock Exchange
(the NYSE) and NYSE Arca (formerly known as the Archipelago Exchange, or ArcaEx, and the Pacific Exchange). NYSE Group is a
leading provider of securities listing, trading and market data products and services. The New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc. (NYMEX)
is the world's largest physical commodity futures exchange and the preeminent trading forum for energy and precious metals, with
trading conducted through two divisions the NYMEX Division, home to the energy, platinum, and palladium markets, and the
COMEX Division, on which all other metals trade. Additional risks are associated with international investing, such as currency
fluctuations, political and economic instability and differences in accounting standards. This material represents an assessment of the
market environment at a specific point in time and is not intended to be a forecast of future events, or a guarantee of future results. Past
performance is no guarantee of future results. Investments will fluctuate and when redeemed may be worth more or less than when
originally invested. All economic and performance data is historical and not indicative of future results. Market indices discussed are
unmanaged. Investors cannot invest in unmanaged indices. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other
professional services. If assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional.
Citations.
1 - tinyurl.com/p4asvgk [11/26/14]
2 - investing.com/economic-calendar/ [11/26/14]
3 - tinyurl.com/k2drhcb [11/28/14]
4 - markets.on.nytimes.com/research/markets/usmarkets/usmarkets.asp [11/28/14]
5 - markets.wsj.com/us [11/28/14]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=11%2F29%2F13&x=0&y=0 [11/28/14]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=11%2F29%2F13&x=0&y=0 [11/28/14]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=11%2F29%2F13&x=0&y=0 [11/28/14]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=11%2F27%2F09&x=0&y=0 [11/28/14]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=11%2F27%2F09&x=0&y=0 [11/28/14]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=11%2F27%2F09&x=0&y=0 [11/28/14]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=DJIA&closeDate=11%2F29%2F04&x=0&y=0 [11/28/14]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=COMP&closeDate=11%2F29%2F04&x=0&y=0 [11/28/14]
6 - bigcharts.marketwatch.com/historical/default.asp?symb=SPX&closeDate=11%2F29%2F04&x=0&y=0 [11/28/14]
7 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyield [11/28/14]
8 - treasury.gov/resource-center/data-chart-center/interest-rates/Pages/TextView.aspx?data=realyieldAll [11/28/14]

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